Abstract
Technological advances have made VR interactions more natural, yet fatigue and social awkwardness persist. Microgestures offer a promising solution. However, prior research has focused mainly on the index finger, leaving the thumb’s potential as a stable, low-fatigue ray-casting modality underexplored. This study conducted two experiments to examine whether the thumb can function as an effective technique for 3D pointing in VR. Experiment 1 compared four input methods: VR controller, hand tracking, index-finger pointing, and thumb pointing. The controller was most efficient, while hand tracking provided greater stability but higher fatigue. Both microgestures outperformed hand tracking in efficiency and fatigue reduction. Experiment 2 examined thumb and index-finger pointing on horizontal and vertical target planes. Vertical layouts facilitated faster and more efficient pointing. The index finger was more efficient overall, but the thumb caused slightly less fatigue during vertical interactions. These findings provide valuable guidance for the design of microgesture-based VR interaction.
Keywords
Virtual Reality; Microgestures; Thumb Pointing; 3D Pointing Techniques; Human-Computer Interaction
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1918
Citation
Wei, H., Zheng, H., Tang, N., Lian, B., Feng, C., Wang, X., and Chai, C. (2026) Can the Thumb Point Effectively in VR? An Evaluation of Different 3D Pointing Techniques, in Simeone, L., Gray, C. M., Verhoeven, A., de Götzen, A., Bakırlıoğlu, Y., Zohar, H., Stead, M., and Buwert, P. (eds.), DRS2026: Edinburgh, 8–12 June, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2026.1918
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Included in
Can the Thumb Point Effectively in VR? An Evaluation of Different 3D Pointing Techniques
Technological advances have made VR interactions more natural, yet fatigue and social awkwardness persist. Microgestures offer a promising solution. However, prior research has focused mainly on the index finger, leaving the thumb’s potential as a stable, low-fatigue ray-casting modality underexplored. This study conducted two experiments to examine whether the thumb can function as an effective technique for 3D pointing in VR. Experiment 1 compared four input methods: VR controller, hand tracking, index-finger pointing, and thumb pointing. The controller was most efficient, while hand tracking provided greater stability but higher fatigue. Both microgestures outperformed hand tracking in efficiency and fatigue reduction. Experiment 2 examined thumb and index-finger pointing on horizontal and vertical target planes. Vertical layouts facilitated faster and more efficient pointing. The index finger was more efficient overall, but the thumb caused slightly less fatigue during vertical interactions. These findings provide valuable guidance for the design of microgesture-based VR interaction.